FORCES PARENTS REVEAL PRIDE
PARENTS of those who marched in the Queen’s state funeral procession have described watching their children accompany the Queen’s coffin as a moment of “huge pride” and something they will remember for the rest of their lives.
Jamie Dykes, 26, from Devon, was selected along with around 200 other Royal Marines to attend Portsmouth for drills last week, his father, Steve, revealed.
Mr Dykes, 49, said he was was “sat anxiously” with his family watching the television to see his son taking part.
After a week of “very hard work” in preparation, the younger Mr Dykes marched on Monday in front of the gun carriage carrying the queen’s coffin from Westminster to Wellington Arch.
“He felt immensely proud and I told him he will remember this for the rest of his life,” his father added.
Kevin Stephens, 62, said seeing his daughter, Cerys, among the Household Cavalry playing Beethoven on the Long Walk up to Windsor Castle was “incredible”.
Ms Stephens, 22, has only been a member of the military band since
April this year and had to “hit the ground running,” despite not yet being able to complete all of her training.
“The strength she has got from being able to do it – to see herself do it and doing it really well... It has just been incredible,” Mr Stephens, from Somerset, said. “It’s going to give her a lot of confidence. She has been working really hard this last week to practise getting [it] absolutely perfect for the day.”
Mr Stephens and his wife Tracy, 59, watched their daughter at home in Somerset but called the day “bittersweet” and “a whirlwind” as thousands took to the Long Walk to catch a glimpse of the monarch’s coffin before its final descent into the Royal Vault. They tried to spot Ms Stephens, who started playing clarinet in primary school, on the television.
“We just couldn’t have dreamed of what’s happened – dream is the wrong word because, obviously, it’s a really sad occasion,” Mr Stephens said. “But in terms of exposure and the pressure she’s playing under, my wife and I were just looking at the thousands of thousands of people lining the band. It’s great.”